Tag Archives: olive oil

FAMILY, Recipes

Mashed “Potatoes”

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As I wind up the last day of my Wheat Belly 10-day detox, I’ll share another basic yet tasty recipe from Dr William Davis.

Mashed “Potatoes”     (makes 4 servings)

  1. 1 large head cauliflower
  2. 1/4 cup canned coconut milk (i use raw milk from grassfed cows)
  3. 2 tablespoons butter (from the same cows, but you could replace this with olive oil)
  4. 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  5. Ground black pepper to taste

Place a steamer basket in a large pot with 2″ of water.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Place the cauliflower in the basket, cover, and steam for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender.

Remove from heat and drain.  In a blender, food processor, or food chopper, combine the cauliflower, milk, butter, salt, and pepper.  Blend or process until smooth

Per serving:  131 calories, 4 g protein, 11 g carbohydrates, 9 g total fat, 6 g saturated fat, 4 g fiber, 214 mg sodium.

Dr Davis provides these additional notes regarding this recipe:

Although not a grain, potatoes yield too many carbohydrates when cooked.  This is a problem in your 10-Day Detox because excessive carbohydrates turn off your capacity to lose weight by triggering blood sugar and insulin to high levels.  Rather than simply subtracting another common staple from your dinner table, here is a way to not just replace mashed potatoes, but to create something that tastes even better, but with none of the problems.  Replace butter with extra-virgin olive oil for a dairy-free version.

Here’s to feeling great!

tauna

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Wash a head of cauliflower.
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With a sharp knife, cut away the stem and leaves of the cauliflower head.
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Don’t throw away those leaves and stem!  Save them all for later chopping for soup, casserole, lumpia.  The leaves have a tangy, crisp taste.
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The recipe calls for separating into florets, but i really didn’t find that necessary.
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Place the steamer basket and cauliflower in pot for steaming.
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Cover and steam 15-20 minutes.  Oh good grief, i got myself in the lid.
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For my family, I cut the head in half because we just don’t need so much.  One half, i will save for later to serve with melted sharper cheddar over top.
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After the cauliflower has cooled slightly, I process the cauliflower in my ancient food processor and add the remaining ingredients.
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Mashed “potatoes”
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Served with fresh green salad mix and a grilled grassfed ground beef burger from our own herd. (this one is actually from that bull!)  And a small piece of Wheat Belly Herbed Focaccia bread.
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A couple days later, I was going to make soup, so i whirred up those leaves and stems.

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FAMILY, Recipes

Wheat Belly Pizza

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My version:

2 1/2 cup almond meal/flour

 

1/4 cup ground flaxseeds

1 teaspoon onion or garlic powder

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese – divided

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 large farm eggs

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup water (may not need this much)

8-10 ounces of grass finished ground beef or lamb or home made beef or lamb sausage

1 cup pizza sauce

Optional ingredients i usually add:  sliced black olives and sliced fresh mushrooms, extra cheese

Preheat the oven to 350°F .

Use a Ninja Blender (mine is called a Fit Blender i believe) or some other type.

In a large bowl, combine the almond flour, pumpkin, sesame flour, ground flax seed, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, onion powder, and sea salt.  Mix well.  Then i add the two large eggs, 1/4 cup olive oil, and the water.  Mix and combine thoroughly.

Butter a 10″ x 15″ pan (i use a stone jelly roll pan).  Place the dough on the pan, then spread the dough by hand.  You may have to keep your fingers wet using olive oil or water to keep it from sticking to your hands.

Bake for 20 minutes.

When you are ready, spread the pizza sauce, i sprinkle some Parmesan cheese if i have any, but usually i don’t, so i use some shredded raw cheddar or whatever i have on hand.  Then crumble the cooked meat on top of that followed by optional olives and/or fresh mushrooms.  Top with remaining mozzarella or other cheese.  Bake for another 12 minutes.

Cut into about 12 pieces; this is very filling.  One piece may fill you right up!

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Wheat Belly 10 day detox book

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FAMILY, Recipes

Israeli Salad

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As soon in the spring that i can source good veggies, i start making my Israeli Salad.  I eat a whole batch nearly everyday that i can through the growing season until the veggies get yucky again.

My recipe is simple:

1 green pepper chopped
1 tomato chopped
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 cucumber chopped
2 tablespoons dried cilantro or parsley (double that if using fresh)
1 teaspoon Real salt (double this if you are sweating a lot and need salt)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil

Stir it all up.  As with most veggies and fruits – room temperature is best for lovely flavours.

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FAITH, Recipes

Pesach Sameach!

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I don’t speak Hebrew, but ‘Happy Passover’ simply hasn’t the same ring to it.  We are commanded this week of Feast of Unleavened Bread to eliminate leaven (not necessarily yeast) from our lives.   I’m not a fan of Matzoh or other flat wheat breads, so here’s what i’ve made.  For those of you who are experts on this, PLEASE let me know if this does not meet biblical standards of unleavened bread.

Focaccia Bread

  1. 3 cups almonds (ground)
  2. 1 cup shredded mozzarella (or whatever cheese you prefer)
  3. 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  4. 1 teaspoon onion powder
  5. 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  6. 1/2 cup black olives (finely chopped)
  7. 2 large eggs
  8. 1/4 cup olive oil

Using my Magic Bullet, i grind the almonds into flour.  Stir all ingredients together in a large bowl with a fork, holding out about 1 tablespoons of the olive oil.

Press mixture onto a buttered 9 x 15 stone pan (use whatever you have), then bake in a 375ºF oven for 12 minutes.

Take out of the oven and cut into squares (i use a pizza cutter), brush with remaining olive oil, (sometimes i use raw butter from grass fed cows) and sprinkle with salt flakes (optional, but not too much).  Bake for another 8 minutes.  Take out of the oven immediately and let cool a bit before trying to remove the squares.  Use a spatula to remove them.

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Take out of the oven and cut into squares (i use a pizza cutter), brush with remaining olive oil, and sprinkle with salt flakes (optional, but not too much).  Bake for another 8 minutes.  Take out of the oven immediately and let cool a bit before trying to remove the squares.  Use a spatula to remove them.

Focaccia Bread

Absolutely delicious in my opinion!

Praise Yah!

tauna

Keeping Yah’s Feasts (and other Mo’edim) is not just a Jewish celebration; it is for ALL His set apart people!  What an honour we are given to give glory to Him in His way.

FAMILY, Frugal Choices, Recipes

Hamburger Soup

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Sunny, but frosty out this morning and although we are expecting a high of 45F, warm soup will feel mighty good today.

Hamburger Soup

1 lbs grass-finished ground beef (browned)

1 cup sliced carrots

1/2 chopped onion

2 cups diced tomatoes

2 cups water or soup stock

1 cup diced celery

2 teaspoons salt (if desired)

1 teaspoon black pepper (if desired)

One pot directions:  brown the ground beef in 1 tablespoon olive oil until no longer pink, add all the other ingredients and simmer.  The longer you simmer it, the more the flavours will meld and veggies soften.

Be creative in ingredients – celery substitute could be the leaves off the back of a head of cauliflower or chopped kohlrabi, leeks would work.  Instead of carrots, maybe turnips, swedes, or rutabaga.  I use my own frozen tomatoes from my garden and since i don’t really cook them down, there is plenty of water in with them, therefore i don’t add more water.  Recipes like this are perfect for emptying the frig or freezer.

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The leaves off the back of a head of cauliflower make a LOT of greens for soup!  Add vitamins A and C plus antioxidants to your meal, not the rubbish bin!
Chickens - Chooks, FAMILY, Recipes

Spatchcock a Chicken?!

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Start with a fresh or frozen pastured (preferably) broiler.  Using scissors, cut out out the backbone.

 

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Cut backbone out completely – this is easier than it looks.  The WSJ recipe says to use the backbone to make broth or discard – DISCARD!  what?!  no way.  Make broth. Using it to make egg drop soup.
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Turn the bird over and smash down breaking breast bone so that the carcass lays fairly flat.

 

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Smashed and ready for rub.
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Rubbed in seasoning of 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon salt (i used Hebridean Sea Salt Flakes harvested from the shores of the remote Scottish Hebridean Isle of Lewis), and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper.
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Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy skillet then place chicken breast side down.  The recipe i used said on medium high heat for 20 minutes, but thankfully i checked this at 12 minutes and it was a bit too brown.  Perhaps using a cast iron skillet made the difference since they hold heat so well.  Next time, i plan to use medium heat for 12 minutes.
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Place aluminum covered bricks on top of chicken to press it down.  I didn’t have any bricks covered, so my improvisation was to lay the cast iron lid upside down, then stack a couple smaller skillets on top for added weight.  Do this for both sides of the chicken.
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Using tongs, flip the chicken over and weight down again, reduce heat to medium low and cook another 15 minutes or so.  This shows needing a bit more time.
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Crispy and done all the way through, including the thick breast meats.  My family really liked it.  So easy, too!

 

Spatchcock a Chicken Recipe
Here are the original instructions as found in Wall Street Journal some years ago.

Cheers!

tauna

FAITH, Recipes

French Cheese Braid (Natte)

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Here’s an easy, delicious, and gorgeous recipe i tried for the first time and was pretty successful!  Taken from my old Betty Crocker International Cookbook.  When i posted it on facebook, a friend noted that it would make a great Challah bread for Shabbat and some of YHWH’s Feasts!  Unbeknowst to me at the time, the little write up for the recipe in the cookbook suggested exactly that!

French Cheese Braid

“The rich yellow dough used to make this braid (the French call it natte) is similar to the Jewish holiday bread called Challah, but somewhat richer in flavor and flecked with bits of cheese.  It is delicious as a luncheon or light supper bread served with soup and salad.”

1 package active dry yeast (i use 1 tablespoon)

3/4 cup warm water (105F to 115F)

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon Real salt

3 eggs

1/2 cup butter, softened

3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour

6 ounces Swiss or Gruyère cheese, shredded or diced (about 1 1/2 cups) (i use mozzarella or cheddar)

olive oil

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons water

Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl.  Stir in sugar, salt, eggs, butter, and 2 cups of the flour.  Beat until smooth.  Stir in enough remaining flour to make the dough easy to handle.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. (I use my Kitchenaid mixer with a dough hook).  Place in a greased bowl; turn greased side up.  (i spray the dough and bowl with my Misto olive oil sprayer and leave the dough in the same mixing bowl).  Cover; let rise in a warm place until double, 1 to 2 hours.  Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.  (If you can’t find a warm spot in your house, set the bowl in a bowl or pan of hot water)

Punch down dough; knead in cheese until well distributed.  Divide into 3 equal parts.  Roll each part into a rope, 15 inches long.  Place ropes together on lightly greased cookie sheet.  Braid ropes gently and loosely; do not stretch.  Pinch ends to fasten; tuck under securely.  Brush lightly with oil.  Let rise until double, 40-50 mintues.  (May have to set your sheet on top of the pan of hot water again)

Heat oven to 375F, Beat egg yolk and 2 tablespoons water slighty; brush over braid.  Place on oven rack below center of oven.  Bake until braid sounds hollow when tapped, 25 to 30 minutes.  If braid is browning too quickly, cover loosely with aluminum foil.

My experience is that this baked fully at 25 minutes and the braid needs covering at about the 18 minute mark.

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I mix then let rise in the same bowl.
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Braided before second rising

 

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After baking
lovely texture

This is perfect bread to accompany soup!

Cheers!

tauna